Escape to the Stars
by Lovely Rain Dancer
Summary: Following a trail of odd occurrences, Sam and Dean stumble upon a djinn unlike anything they've ever read. And that's when things start to get complicated. (Post-Season 2/Pre-Season 3)
1. Chapter 1: Dreams

Silence, only broken by soft breathing coming from several places in the darkened room. She looks around, her breath mingling with theirs as she checks to make sure they're still healthy, sneakers scuffing the ground quietly as she makes her rounds.

They feed her, and she gives them happiness. It's a fair deal, made without trickery, lies or deceit. And even though she's younger than most of the lost souls gathered here, she's come to be a motherly figure to them, the one who soothes their wounds, comforts them and allows them to escape reality.

A stirring comes from a corner and she ghosts there rapidly, brow furrowing faintly as she touches his forehead, tattoos crawling down her arms, eyes and hands warming with a faint blue glow. Mitchell Sommings, used by time, alcohol and all the worries of the world. His dreams of travel and freedom are starting to fade, calling him back to the horrors of the reality he had rejected. She kisses his forehead softly, returning him to his adventures in Tibet, smiling as she adds a few details, just for him and his happiness. He sighs in pleasure and she watches over him a few seconds longer, cheeks glowing with a healthy sheen.

A soft sound of chimes rings out from upstairs and she walks up to the small office uptop, the façade for the weathered hidden basement underneath. A small waith of woman is standing there, looking lost as she hugs herself, waiting for a reply, for anything in fact.

When she hears her coming through the door, she sags in relief, having found a life vest, something to keep her above water. She knows the type, she's seen them dozens of times before.

"This is the place where you can find happiness?" The inquiry is soft, hesitant, but hopeful still. Perhaps it's finally the end of her journey?  
She smiles softly, encouragingly. "Yes. I'm Dominia. Do you understand how it works?"

A small nod. "They've explained. My friends, I mean. That they had come to you. A little life, a few months, in exchange for the perfect dream?" She pauses, checking to make sure she's not utterly off-track. Dominia smiles again, silently telling her to continue.

"I want that."  
"Alright."

She stands, gesturing for her to follow down the stairs and to an empty bed, an IV next to it, prepped for a client.

"Make yourself comfortable." She gestures, waiting patiently for the girl to be ready. When she is, Dom takes off her gloves and places her hands on temples, giving her a dream of peace, of calm rolling hills and farms, all the girl had been wishing for. "Be happy." She whispers, before standing up and leaving Monnie to her happiness.

* * *

A/N: This was just a small idea I had based on my vision of djinns and what they had the potential to be in the Supernatural verse. I don't know if I'll continue this or not, but I'll leave it as a work in progress for now.


	2. Chapter 2: New Beginnings

His time is up. Four months passed, four months of pure bliss for him, four months of that necessary sustenance for her.

Dominia sighs to herself before descending into the basement, heading towards Carl Monfield's cot almost reluctantly. The boy was only eighteen, brilliant and filled with the potential to be much more than a broken victim of society, someone so fragmented inside that, in a last resort, he had come to her.

Placing her fingers on his temple delicately, she rouses him from his fantasy of success, of confidence and self-assurance.

"Carl? It's time to come back now..." Her voice is almost a whisper, careful not to jolt him back to reality too harshly.

The boy blinks and sits up drowsily, looking at her first confused, then desperate.

"Why did you wake me up?! Why? I was happy!" His voice breaks off with a sob and she hushes him, careful to not touch his bare skin.

"Carl, staying there longer would have killed you... But you can get it for real, you know that. You have the potential."

Smiling softly, she presses her index against his heart. "In there. It's only hidden, you see. You just needed the push to believe it."

Carl's eyes are wide, disbelieving. He starts to shake his head but Dominia shushes him with a mere glance, blue gaze comforting and empowering him.

For him, it's like a soft flow towards realization, a drift, progressive and non-violent. Dominia smiles, perceiving it easily. She slips her gloves back on before taking a wad of bills from her pocket and folding them into his hand.  
"This is your chance Carl, alright? You go do what you want, be whoever you want. I've shown you that it was possible..."

He nods, flashing what would, in the future, come to be called the "Monfield million dollar grin".

"Thanks Dom. I couldn't have-" pressing a finger against his lips, she hushes him, sisterly in her approach. "Go get them Carl. And don't forget to send me a post-card, hm?"

The broken boy walks away with a new assurance and she smiles to herself as she watches him fade into the horizon.

She's their savior, it's the role she's assigned herself. Taking their life is egotistical enough, she couldn't just let them die afterwards, because of longing for something that could never happen. No, that isn't her. So she fixes them instead, gives them a possibility and the means to make that simple idea real. Her organization is hidden, secure, but findable for those who truly need it.

And if they do need Dominia, then she'll be sure to do whatever is needed to pay them back for their gift of life.

* * *

A/N: Thanks to Chocolate Boy for providing the inspiration for this. I might have a few other ideas now. :) Thanks for your support.


	3. Chapter 3: Slice of Life

"30 disappearances in 2 years. They just vanish with no traces, then reappear a month or so later, completely changed. The latest to return is Carl Monfield."

"The new guy on TV, the one with … the smile?"

"Yeah, yeah, that guy."

"So why are we even interested, exactly? Seems like a huge load of nothing to me. 'Sides, they all came back!"

"Yeah, completely changed! Do you even listen to me…? They could've been… replaced or something. Aren't you always going on about pod people or alien invasions?"

"Aliens… Sam, these people need our help."

"Sure, Dean, sure. Let's go."

"You think the real Carl Monfield is there somewhere?"

"Shut up Dean."

"Bitch."

"Jerk."

* * *

She had killed in the past. A faraway past, a time she liked to pretend had never existed, a time she would eradicate if she could. When others like the-her-from-the-past crossed through her area, she often shut down shop, cowering in the basement for days, terrified they would find her, terrified that the temptation would return, that she would fall back into the easy way of life, the one that left trails of drained bodies in her wake.  
Those days, she wouldn't feed at all, starving herself to keep her mind clear with the pain.

Now, her body was clamoring for nourishment, so much that she couldn't trust herself with her protégés. It was time to visit the outside world. Grimacing, Dominia pulled on a jacket and trudged out onto the main street, wincing at the bright sun that had chosen the perfect day to peak out of the clouds. It was November, dammit! The weather was supposed to be terrible, dreary, not worthy of an Indian summer. There was a reason why djinns often preferred darkness. They had to be sensitive to perceive the wishes and desires of their vict—their patients, so their senses were heightened for that purpose. Blinding sun like today, thus, was never a good idea. People were strolling in the streets, enjoying the day and sometimes glancing at her, unused to see her out of her place.

"Dominia, darling! It's so good to see you out of that shop! I keep telling you that you should go out more, tan a little and get some color on those pale cheeks of yours…"

The girl in question winced a little at the enthusiasm in Ms. Mozzie's tone, the old shopkeeper crowding her space in her eagerness, tempting her with the sheer energy exuding from the frail body.

"Hello to you too, Ms. Mozzie. It's good to see you again. I'm looking for my usual grocery order. I'm a little late, got caught up in… work."

"Again?! Dear, this really isn't healthy, you should be careful. A normal human being needs at least 3 meals a day…"

Dominia smirked humorlessly. She barely needed energy; there wasn't much in her to feed, especially when she took the edge off with human food.

"Of course, of course…" With Ms. Mozzie, she had perfected her different types of smiles. The one she was using now had been nicknamed the "contrite". It seemed to be the only way to pacify the passionate elder. "I'll try to remember this time." After all, she didn't want to raise suspicions, it wouldn't be agreeable or practical to have to move now, just when she was starting to feel somewhat home.

As she was about to pick up her bags and head back to the shop, a childish call stopped her in her tracks.

"Domi! Let me help you!"

Sighing quietly, she turned to face Josh, a small boy that had decided to attach himself to every one of her steps, whenever she headed into town. From her quiet inquiries, she had discovered that his parents had left him on the steps of the church at only a few months' age and that he trailed aimlessly around the rest of the time. From that moment on, she had tolerated the kid with a smile, listening passively to his endless chatter.

"If you want, you can take one bag." She offered, knowing he'd never back down if she didn't relent. She didn't have much control left, so it was in her best interest to just get home as fast as possible, before any damage was done.

He grinned with puerile enthusiasm, before struggling to carry the package, causing a grin to appear on her lips. "Not too heavy?"

The defiant response came immediately. "Never!" Stubborn, pig-headed yet entirely adorable. That's how she defined the bundle of energy that was Josh.

Together, they trudged back to her shop, Dom stopping him before he could even consider coming inside with her. It had been strictly off-limits from the start and she was determined to keep it thus. The people in town thought her some sort of counselor, a new-wave therapist. Not a supernatural monster that fed on them. She doubted that they'd stay quite so amiable if they learned the truth.

Sighing again at his obvious disappointment, she waved goodbye before shutting the blinds, blinking in relief at the shade. She stored the groceries away neatly, before cooking herself a rare steak, soothing the urges with the almost bloody meat. It wasn't as satisfying as real human energy (or even better, human blood), but it did the trick.

Instincts staved, she headed back down to the safe-haven, starting her rounds calmly, humming a few bars of Mozart. The music penetrated the thick unnatural sleep she plunged them in, keeping them serene and non-agitated, allowing the dreams to be more effective and less draining. The discovery had been a complete accident, but had become very useful since.

When she arrived to her older patients, she almost groaned aloud, realizing that the time she had spent playing the coward had caused the dreams to start to turn rotten, letting them fester and turn bad. She had compromised their safety for her own. Dammit. Shaking her head at her own egoism, Dom took off her gloves and placed her hands on Yolanda Meitner's temples, concentrating as she swept away the old and rebuilt a new structure. For the middle-aged woman, she had recreated a daughter, still alive and healthy, to allow her a few months to gain closure, to find a way to accept reality. It was a slow, painful project, but she was committed for it to succeed. Yolanda deserved to gain her life back. She had told her husband she was leaving for an exclusive rehab, that she would be unavailable for a few months. It was lying, per say. She gleaned only a small portion of energy, using her own to strengthen the illusion the woman was living in. Taking a deep breath, she stood up and headed to the next patient, lowering her hands to his temples like before. She closed her eyes…

.

.

.

And that was when the bullet cracked into the wall, just millimeters away from her head.

* * *

A/N: Oops, how did that happen..? I've got ideas running through my head, thanks to the reviews. I hope this answers some of your questions! Thanks for all the support, you have no idea how much I appreciate it!


	4. Chapter 4: Confrontations

"Oh, him? Yeah, he was Domi's patient. Really cool too, he gave me a lollipop before leaving town!"

Sam and Dean glanced at each other, almost eerily in sync, before snapping their gazes back to Josh, knowing they had found their monster.

"Domi?"

"Yeah, she's a tera-… theri-… healer person, for minds! She's really nice with everyone. Moved in 2 years ago, I think."

Nodding, Sam bent down to be at the boy's level, trying to making him feel more at ease and less threatened by his size.

"Can you tell us where she lives? We have a friend that needs her help."

He almost felt guilty for lying to the kid, who obviously had a case of hero worship for this unknown 'therapist'. But she was clearly the monster they were supposed to gank, even if she seemed to have blended in remarkably with the population there. No one even suspected anything! He still didn't really know what she was either. Nowhere had he ever read about a thing that replaced bodies and sent them to become television stars.

Beaming at them, the boy nodded at a speed that almost made the two hunters dizzy.

"Her place is right down this street. I just helped her with groceries, so she's probably still at home."

Dean tried to hide the snort that escaped him. A monster doing groceries. How… domestic. The last time, with that creepy-ass djinn, he hadn't recalled a need for anything but _his own freaking blood._

"Thanks, that's really helpful of you."

Dean nodded, letting Sam do the small talk. He had never been a fan of the diplomatic stuff. Destroying monsters was more his style.

"No problem! Hey, could you remind her that we have to go bowling next Saturday?"

Sam held back a grimace at the innocent question, before nodding in agreement. Hopefully, the kid would forget by then. After they were done, the monster wouldn't be going anywhere.

"Sure!" Dean smirked reassuringly at the kid, who, satisfied, turned on his feet and ran down the street to other pastures, almost knocking down a trashcan in his haste.

The brothers glanced at each other. "Let's go?"

"Yeah, let's get this over with." Sam obviously wasn't that enchanted by their mission, after chatting with the people around town. Sighing, he set off after his brother, hoping they weren't going to find another Lenore. One had been bad enough.

* * *

_And that was when the bullet whizzed past her head and cracked into the wall. _

Dominia remained frozen for a split second, before dropping down to the dirt floor out of sheer instinct, protecting her head. Hunters! How had she been found?! There were no bodies, no trails to follow! She had been good, she had followed the rules, she had redeemed herself…

More bullets ricocheted against the walls and she yelped, snapping out of her self-questioning and recalling exactly where she was.

"Stop shooting! You'll hit them!"

The outcry caused a brief moment of utter silence and she breathed a mute thanks to whatever divinity was out there.

"And why the heck do you care about your meals?"

Blinking at the unexpected question, she scrambled to her knees, trying to get into a more defensive position.

"Will you shoot again if I stand up?" she questioned instead, deliberately avoiding theirs. She wasn't really in the mood to play "20 questions about djinn feeding habits" with hunters trying to murder her, at this point. Usually, she at least waited till the third attempt.  
She discretely attempted to move again. Strategically, she would be better positioned if she could see their position.

A second voice rang out in the basement, less gravely than the first. So two hunters at least, probably no more. They usually worked alone or in duos, in her experience.

"Not for now. We'll just talk."

The first voice obviously wasn't very satisfied with this response, since she could hear muted grumbles coming from their side. Thus, prudence was essential. Dominia hauled herself up, holding up her hands to appear non-threatening. It was basically truth at this point, since she had no possibility – or desire – to poison them.

They were two men, one taller than the other. They were both dressed in non-descript, probably comfortable clothes. Both held themselves tall, showing they were powerful and knew it. Crap. She had to have the professional hunters find her. A detached part of her mind noted with interest that they were also rather attractive, one in a cuter, puppy-ish manner than the first. If she hadn't been their prey, if she had been human, she might've described herself as interested. But now wasn't the time.

"Alright, let's talk then." Dominia's voice was posed, betraying none of her fear.

"Okay then, answer my first question."

* * *

Sam really wasn't happy now. This was supposed to be a simple job, a "gank then get the hell outta dodge" type hunt. And now, here they were with a monster that was obviously smart enough to think, hold a conversation _and_ that cared about "her meals", as Dean has so elegantly put it.

The fact that she wasn't ugly didn't help either with his shaky, yet still existing moral standings. Vibrant blue eyes stared coolly across the room, betraying nothing of her emotions. Apparently unconcerned by the threat they posed, she shook her chestnut hair before responding to Dean's question.

"Because they're not my meals. They're my _patients_."

The brothers exchanged another glance, Sam's gaze turning doubtful, and Dean's obviously disbelieving. It was clear in his mind that monsters were monsters. They didn't have patients, only victims that they were in charge of saving: Winchester family, ganking stuff since the 1980's. Huh. Maybe Sam should be in charge of the interrogation. He didn't particularly want this to get out of hand if he had the possibility of avoiding it. One death less on his ledger.

"What do you mean by patients, exactly?" With her answer, it would be easier to pinpoint _what _she was. Sifting through the species he knew, he was already dismissing monsters with an inhumane appearance and others of the like. The cerulean eyes were also interesting, too bright to be natural.

"I mean patients." Oh, snarky, was she? "They come to me as a last resort and I help them."

That was vague. What kind of monster _helped_ their victims? It didn't make sense, although it did explain those later reappearances. Dean had to be disappointed. No pod people. Talking about the devil, there he was, interrupting the careful string of questions he had prepared.

"That's cute. We're asking_ how._ You brainwash them? Cause this is a real nice set-up from what I can see. What, are there ten people down here? More?"

Her expression twisted a little, and she crossed her arms across her chest, allowing Sam to catch sight of a tattoo or two twisting around the skin. Djinn. Of course! But the M.O. didn't fit. Djinns killed their victims. Dean's almost-demise had been a proof of that.

"I don't hurt them, despite whatever you seem to want to believe! I _help_." She took a deep breath before nodding to a man laying down in front of her. "You want a demonstration perhaps?"

"Don't touch him!" Dean barked before Sam could get a single word in, raising his gun again.

* * *

"Why would I kill my supposed 'hostages'? Even for an idiot, that wouldn't be a very smart move." Dominia would've rolled her eyes if she wasn't so high-strung. The smaller one wasn't very patient, was he?  
Maybe appealing to the giant would work better.

"I won't hurt him. I haven't hurt anyone here and I've been here two years. But you probably knew that already, didn't you?"

Dominia voluntarily left out of the discussion anything she had done before this town. It was better to speak only truth when negotiating for your life. You were less likely to make mistakes.

"Okay, show us what you do. But make a wrong move and we shoot." Ah, her idea had worked. The tall one was obviously more receptive. She nodded, before turning towards Todd Manning, man who had lost everything in a robbery turned wrong three months ago. He was a little early for awakening but she could work with what she had. He was close to catharsis, a final push in the right direction wouldn't be hard.

Placing her fingers on his temples cautiously, she nudged the middle-aged man out of his artificial slumber, humming soothingly to keep him from panicking as he resurfaced. She had to be extra-cautious this time, her lovely audience wouldn't allow her a mishap, and she liked her body _without _holes in it.

"Todd…? It's time to come back now…"

* * *

Sam moved forwards a little when he was certain the girl/woman/djinn/monster was completely captured by her task, curious to see what she was doing specifically. He had never seen such a process, and learning more could always prove useful.  
Dean, on the other hand, leaned against the wall, polishing his gun with disinterest, trusting Sam to make the good call. Djinns weren't really his favorite things to deal with, after the last time.

She was talking to the man softly and Sam could tell the moment when the spell she had placed on him broke. The unknown guy gasped and shot up, obviously panicking. Tensing, the hunter reached towards his gun, prepared to take her down if she was harming him. But instead, she reached out and… _hugged _him, holding him to her until he calmed down enough.  
He couldn't tell what she was telling him exactly, but it sounded rather convincing. As he watched incredulously, the man's expression changed, going from despaired to almost hopeful. She was good, whatever she was doing.

Leaning against the wall as well, he observed as she guided him back upstairs, hugging him again when they reached the door, after handing him something that looked suspiciously like a wad of cash. Where the heck had she gotten so much cash? While she was out of sight, Dean raised an eyebrow at Sam, silently asking whether to gank or not. Sam responded with a shrug, honestly having no idea how to proceed. His foreboding had been correct it _was_ like Lenore and the veggie vamps all over again.

Their silent conversation was cut off by the djinn when she returned down the stairs, glancing at the two before hopping onto the now-empty cot, deceptively at ease. She looked almost fragile there, her sneakers not even touching the ground, swinging back and forth instead. Her clothes didn't really scream 'monster' either, they rather made her look younger, teen-ish. A small, bitter smirk twisted her lips, before she muttered, jerking her chin in their general direction:

"Well. What now?"

* * *

A/N: Well here's the latest installment of my story. I hope it manages to capture your interest! Thank you once again for the reviews, they're tremendously appreciated. I'd love to get more feedback, so please, please take the time to drop a word or two.

Disclaimer: I am in no way associated with Supernatural (though I wish I was), and do not own the characters and species I am using in this story. Dominia and the town folks are from my brain though.


	5. Chapter 5: Making a Deal

"_What do we do now?"_

The two hunters concerted each other with a mere glance, confirming her first intuition of brothers. No one else could communicate that well without speaking. They had some sort of bond; that much was obvious. The number of monsters they must've brought down together with such cooperation… They had to be deadly. Killer machines, oiled to perfection. Even with her species advantage, Dominia knew she didn't stand a chance in hell. Even on a good day, which certainly wasn't the case. She was still weak from her foray with self-starving and renewing the dreams certainly hadn't helped.

"You're a djinn right?" The taller one asked, seeming less on edge and a little more curious than before. The words made the rougher one tense a little, indicating he had probably had a bad run-in with one of her race in the past. Possibly recent, seeing the obvious telling reaction. She didn't blame him. Most djinns weren't exactly known for their people skills, especially once they poisoned you and drained you dry. Memories flashed in the back of her mind, unconsciously causing her to wince.  
If he considered her a monster, that didn't bode very well for her quickly reducing life expectancy.

"Yeah." She kept her words terse and to the point, not wanting to give them ammunition, aka more motivation to skewer her. But then again, they were the only hunters she had ever seen or heard of that had taken the time to _talk_ to her, instead of just attacking brutishly with lamb-blood-dipped silver daggers. That gave her hope, but the feeling was dangerous at this point, despite how dearly she wanted to believe it. Hope of survival was often misleading and lead to huge, deadly disappointments.

"My name's Dominia. Josh calls me Domi though, so it's however you want. I don't mind."

If they had her name, they had her identity. She wasn't just 'the thing' anymore. She was praying it would make her seem more human, less like a target to eliminate.

Something in her sentence seemed to jolt the tall one's memory, and he muttered almost distractedly:

"He wanted me to remind you about the bowling session, next Saturday."

Dominia froze, losing the façade of cool and unbothered that she had so painstakingly constructed. "You talked to Josh?! What did you say to him?"  
Hopping off the cot, she took a step towards him, almost begging. "Please, tell me you didn't reveal what I was. Please -" she broke off, turning away to hide her weakness. This was stupid. Why would hunters care about preserving a monster's secret? The whole town probably knew by now. Her cover would be blown and she would have to flee, to start all over again, starving herself until she could find patients willing to make a deal. Just when she had started to feel a little bit at home…

The hunter that had stayed aloof until now came closer, curiosity and distrust warring in his eyes. "Why would you even care about a human kid?"

She kept her back to them, taking a few steps away to regain her composure. "He didn't really have anyone to call family, when I arrived, you know. Josh just squatted in the church pews every night, and wandered around all day, chatting to the few people that would acknowledge him. Didn't even go to school. Nobody really cared enough to force him to attend. You'd never guess when seeing him now, would you? He's a straight A student."

Leaving her explanation at that, she pivoted back to face them, changing the subject to less treacherous grounds, something where she wasn't likely to tear up at a moment's notice. She had never been good at separating her emotions from the rest…

"But you didn't give me any names. Shouldn't I at least get a name out of the people that may or may not murder me tonight? It'd be the least you could do." She curved her lips into a smile, trying to instill a bit of humor into her situation.

The shorter one clammed up immediately, face going blank as he crossed his arms across his chest. Power move to keep control, but defensive pose all the same. She wouldn't get anything out of him, least of all a name. The freakishly tall one almost smiled, seeming apologetic, before answering, to her small surprise. She hadn't actually expected a reply.

"I'm Sam." That was a nice name. It fit somehow. Sweet yet powerful. Didn't it have something to do with God? Yeah, powerful, that was the adjective she was looking for. She quirked her lips in an attempt at an honest grin.  
"I'd say nice to meet you, but I'm not sure the circumstances really fit…"

This elicited a chuckle from Sam and a roll of the eyes from the one-with-no-name. Obviously he wasn't concerned with seeming polite to a freak-show monster. She understood the feeling.

* * *

Sam took a breath before speaking, unsure about their current position. "Well…"

"You're going to kill me, aren't you? I probably couldn't convince you to show mercy, especially not after a djinn attacked your brother." Her tone was flat, almost factual, as if she was discussing exchange rates or even the weather, rather than the time she had left to survive. A far cry from the smile of a few seconds ago. Reality had caught up with them.

Sam blinked, surprised at the accuracy of her deduction.

Dean started at her declaration, growling his words in anger:

"How'd you know that?! Get out of my mind!"

"I'm not, you _moron_! I'm not even touching you! Djinns aren't gods! We don't just take a stroll in your head whenever we want to!" Dominia snapped back, losing her previous cool with the accusations. Sam took a quick step forward to put himself in the middle of the two, trying to present himself as a mediator, a referee of sorts. He really didn't want to have to find a hospital in this godforsaken town. Dean would hate for him to drive the Impala. His baby needed 'talented' hands, dixit the man himself.

"Then how'd you get all that, huh? Explain it!" he snarled, as Sam placed a hand on his shoulder, half-calming, half-restraining.

* * *

Dominia wisely took a step back before answering. "Observation. You really didn't seem at ease with the idea of djinns, you keep grimacing each time we say the word. Plus, we can sense when another has touched a human. It's like staking a claim, sort of. If the djinn is powerful enough, the mere claim is strong enough to keep others away. Although the more powerful djinns don't often leave anything to stake a claim _on_."

Should she really be revealing all her secrets to her to-be assassins? Ah well, it wasn't like she had much to live for at this point. The only thing she absolutely needed to do was to heal all of her protégés before they did the 'deed'. Her dying wouldn't be good for them at all. Probably a death sentence, now that she considered it seriously. And she had promised them a second chance, a second lease on life. She never went back on her promises. She owed them that much, after taking months of their life expectancies away to inflate her own. It was her form of atoning for what she had done in the past, for what she was doing now (although for her, this wasn't sinning, this was being a twisted version of a good Samaritan – as good as a monster could possibly be, anyways).

Thinking fast and sifting through the few options she had left, Domi came to a decision. "You know what? I'll make a deal with you. You leave me the time to finish healing the 5 patients I have left and then I'll come with you. Willingly. I'll even stab myself, if that's what you want. You won't have to lift a finger. The monster commits suicide."

* * *

A/N: Here's the next chapter! It's a little shorter than usual, but I really wanted to end on this point, so that was that. I hope you all enjoyed it! Please do review, it does wonders for the soul!

Disclaimer: I do not own Supernatural in any way, and never will. My only property here is Dominia and the other background characters that make an appearance.


	6. Chapter 6: Learning Curve

"You aren't really helping them, you know. You're just making them addicts. What if they don't manage to create the new reality you keep talking about? What happens then? They become worse than before?"

Dominia closed her eyes briefly, before turning to the giant that had been shadowing her for the last few days and who had obviously decided to open a can of worms with his curiosity.

"I'm doing what I can, alright? This is the best solution I could create, I'm working with what I got. You have no idea how hard it is to get away from the lifestyle you were born in!"

Her tone has risen a little on the last words, revealing she wasn't as cool-tempered as she had attempted to show during the previous few days. Sam looked down at her, a grimace twisting his expression. Raising an eyebrow, she wondered what thoughts were running through that rapidly functioning brain of his.

"I actually do, somewhat." He mumbled, not really looking in her direction.

Domi raised her other eyebrow before stopping at one of the numerous unoccupied benches that dotted the main street. "I think we're going to need to sit down for this." She commented wryly, before patting the spot next to her.

Sam hesitated before sitting down, hunching over a tad to be approximately at her height.

"Not really sure I want to talk about it."

Smiling sardonically, Domi shrugged. "I'll be dead in less than a month. Not much chance of your dark secrets getting out."

She had pretty much accepted the fact that she was going to die in a few weeks. It was more than she had expected when she had first started this way of life (aka the very kind and non-murdering one), so she might as well make the best of it, instead of just mourning over that fact during the time she had left.

Sam snorted faintly in amusement at her choice of words, before shaking his head, clearly not convinced by her oh-so-compelling argument.

"Nope, nice try though. I'm pretty sure Dean wouldn't appreciate me blabbing our… -dark secrets you said? - to you."

Ah Dean. Always the Dean, the older brother, the one in command. The one who wanted her dead also. However today, he was also the one that wasn't here. After supporting the presence of the djinn, he had left on a solo hunt, a simple salt-and-burn, apparently needing to 'clear his head', dixit Sam, who had been left in charge of the baby-sitting.

They fought she had been out of earshot when they had discussed his instructions, but she had heard clearly. "One wrong move and you gank her, no questions asked". Those were Dean's exact directives for his younger brother, who had merely nodded in agreement. Ah, how they trusted her. It was truly heart-warming.

"Hey, if that's the only thing worrying you, I can take an oath not to tell on you." She offered, still curious to know why exactly he felt that he could relate her earlier declaration. Despite the reassurance, he still wasn't showing much enthusiasm, so she decided to up the ante a little to convince him.

"I'll make you a deal," at those words he chuckled a little, recalling the shock that had filled him the last time she had said those words. A monster proposing to off herself to save them the trouble. That was unheard of. The chestnut-haired djinn rolled her eyes good-naturedly and continued, "Yeah, yeah I know. Anyways, I'll make you a deal: for each thing you offer, you get to ask me a question of your choice. That work better for you?"

Sam perked up a little at this, having been curious about her ever since that discussion. There had to be so much to learn from her, it was such a wasted potential… With her knowledge, he could continue to fill in his dad's journal, add more… Maybe even create his own section? Giving a few tidbits of his past would surely be worth it… And like she said, Dean didn't have to know.

"Fine, you got yourself a deal." He grumbled without any antipathy, flashing her a grin before sobering, deciding what he would say first.

"What I meant by what I said earlier… Well as you probably guessed, I'm from a hunter family." she nodded quietly, encouraging him to pursue his explanation. "We've been on the road since I was six months old." He decided to bypass the whole demon bit, knowing that most 'monsters' usually fled in panic at the mention of the inhabitants of hell. Dean had tasked him with making sure she stayed put, so that wouldn't help at all.

He paused before glancing back at her. "That a thing?"

She laughed heartily, throwing her head back a little in amusement. "Oh, you're crafty. Fine, sure, sure that works. What do you want to know?"

Sam sifted through the questions he had carefully stockpiled before selecting one. "Can you explain a little bit more about what you said to Dean – that thing about djinns recognizing others and all that?"

Nodding, Domi prepared her answer. "Nice question. Let's see how I can make that clearer. The best way I could do that is with an analogy, so bear with me here, okay? You know how dogs pee on trees to mark their territory?" Sam nodded in agreement, eyes twinkling in amusement at her choice of metaphor. She snorted at him, before shaking her head.

"I can see you mocking me. I told you to bear with me, you get why now. Anyways, back to my glorious example. They mark their territory to make sure that others won't come and take it from them. Well djinns do a little of the same thing... - I'm making my species sound like beasts, aren't I? – Each djinn has his or her trade-mark poison that we can recognize from afar. So if a human is already claimed for some reason, others will know to stay away or face the wrath of the other one. The thing is, the human usually doesn't survive long enough for that to actually be useful…"

She grimaced faintly at him, before raising an eyebrow in surprise, realizing that he wasn't disgusted but actually interested by what she was saying.

"So if you marked Dean and me, would that keep other djinns from touching us?" he questioned, trying to figure out the logistics of it all.

Domi's incredulity was plastered all over her face, but she responded nonetheless, humoring him. "If your brother didn't kill me for even attempting that, I suppose it could. I do have a bit of sway, although it was lessened when I decided to go… 'Vegan'."

"A bit of sway? What do you mean by that?"

It was Domi's turn to sigh, her shoulders sagging a little as she prepared to clarify another point.

"Well there's a sort of… hierarchy, I suppose, in the djinn society. The leader, aka the most powerful, and his immediate family control the rest. The current leader of the North American djinns happens to be my uncle."

She smiled humorlessly at his deer-in-the-headlights look, before continuing.

"So that's why I have a bit of sway. But please don't tell your brother. I think he'd like the idea of having me as hostage or whatever too much. Especially since my family is still attempting to bring me back to the rightful path of drinking human blood and all that jazz."

Sam nodded, his expression serious. "I'll keep that to myself, sure. Thanks for telling me though." Still stuck on his previous idea, he asked: "So would you consider putting a claim on me? It could be useful to be protected against djinns…"

Domi grimaced faintly before shaking her head. "I don't know. It might end up making you a target for my family… They could use you to trace back to me and that could involve… unsavory moments. Let's leave it at that?"

"Oh. Okay then. Let's avoid unsavory moments." He commented with a grin, before standing and holding his hand out to help her up as well. "Let's go before we fall into depression or something. I'll get you an ice-cream."

Domi blinked, gaze flickering between his honest expression and the offered hand before nodding, completely stunned by his suggestion. Why was he being nice? She must've fallen in some alternate reality…

Placing her gloved hand in his, she nodded and let herself be tugged back to her feet. "Sure, I'll guide you then. You have to live here to know where to go."

Sam nodded, still cheerful as he let go of her hand, not before glancing with curiosity at the leather glove she was wearing, which completely clashed with the rest of her clothes.

"Guide along then. I still have a question though, no? Why do you wear the gloves?"

Domi looked up at his teasing expression before chuckling. "I'm pretty sure you're cheating here, but sure, whatever. I guess I can answer. Basically…"

* * *

A/N: Here's the latest chapter, produced after a long combat against writer's block... I hope you like it and that it brings a little insight into my vision of djinns and how it affects my characters. There's not much action here but I like this chapter nonetheless. I hope you do too!  
Please do review, you have no idea how touching it is to see those notification emails in my inbox. It's the only reward I get for writing all this, so please! I'd really appreciate it, if only to ameliorate the story for everyone.


	7. Chapter 7: Secrets and Agreements

"Dude, I told you to keep watch over the monster, not to bake cookies and go sightseeing with it!"

Sam looked up from his laptop, mentally groaning at the idea of getting into an argument with his brother so late in the evening. He had just gotten back from his little salt-and-burn therapy apparently and those were the first words out of his mouth? No thanks.

"Jeez, what, I was supposed to tie her up and throw her in the dungeon that we don't own?"

Dean's eyes narrowed at his brother's sarcasm, before petulantly responding: "Yeah! It's not human, don't play buddy with it!"

Deciding that placating was better than aggravating, Sam turned the screen towards Dean, eyebrows raised. "I was doing research, you know, learning? And since you're being so close-minded, you're going to like what I found."

His dry tone rose Dean's interest and the man leaned closer, eyes scanning the information with disguised curiosity. "What's this?"

"It's a collar. I've read about it in several different places. So apparently, it puts a… sort of leash on the djinn and keeps her from using her powers."

Dean's grin was almost eerie as he asked: "How do we make it?"

Sighing audibly, Sam turned the computer back towards him, reading out the list of ingredients before commenting: "It's not that hard to build, but I don't think we can find the stuff here… One of us would have to go around while the second distracts Domi."

Dean's grimace at the nickname went unnoticed by his brother, who was already considering how to execute his plan. Planning was always better than considering the doubtful morals of the situation. Sam really wasn't at ease with this whole suicide project. It felt too human, hit too close to home for him to like it.

"Sure Sammy, you can play babysitter again, I'll take care of the shopping," he commented while scribbling down the necessary things. Glancing back to the open oven next to them, he licked his lips unconsciously. "The pie looks good though. You should keep the baker job."

Snorting, Sam didn't even look up from his keyboard. "Domi did the cooking, I'm only supervising to make sure it didn't burn. But go ahead and try it. I'm pretty sure she didn't poison it."

Dean laughed dryly before elbowing him, tearing his gaze away from the pastry: "Bitch."

The reply came automatically, a well-oiled machine: "Jerk."

Dominia stretched quietly from her position on the couch, oversensitive nose twitching from the odors coming from the kitchen. Obviously, her little cooking project had finished during her nap. After checking on her patients, she had dropped like a stone, completely drained by her efforts. The energy she had taken was only starting to take effect now.

She padded to the kitchen, pulling her hair into a sloppy ponytail as she did, not paying attention to where she was going.

"The pie ready yet?" she called, entering the room and freezing suddenly, an extra scent reaching her nostrils. Dean was back. Crap. She hadn't expected him.

The two hunters both saw her back straighten almost compulsively, blue eyes narrowing as she caught sight of them. Gone was the relaxed girl, the predator was back.

Dominia forced her instincts down, taking a breath and slowly releasing tension. "Oh Dean, you're back." She quipped, voice steady and cool. "Want some pie?"

The hunter snorted faintly, before grabbing his duffel bag and heading to the door. "Thanks but I value my life more than that. I'm heading out."

Her eyebrows raised in surprise. After all, he had only returned a few minutes or hours ago. While she was pondering this issue, she missed the significant glance that passed between the two brothers. When Dean had exited the room, she turned back towards Sam, tentatively smiling.

"I'm guessing you wouldn't want any either?" she joked weakly. She actually liked Sam somewhat; he was a pretty decent human being when she didn't consider the fact that he would order her death in a few weeks.

Sam debated the issue for a few seconds before rolling his eyes and grabbing a piece, biting into it heartily and groaning in happiness at the taste. "This is really good," he mumbled through the slice, before concentrating on the food and quickly closing the pages he had been working on.

Domi grinned at him before sitting down at the cheap counter seat, swinging her legs in a deceptively relaxed position. She bit her lip before starting her question. "Uhm…"

Sam looked up in curiosity, encouraging her to continue. "What's up?"

Dominia bit the bullet before speaking up. "I have a date this evening." Sam blinked once, twice, looking absolutely shell-shocked, his expression so humorous that she couldn't help but giggle.

"With Josh." She specified a little, tilting her head to the side. "You're the one who reminded me, remember?"

"Oh…" Sam breathed out, finally realizing what she was explaining. "Yeah, yeah, what's the problem?"

"Well can I still go, or do I have to cancel?"

Sam bit his lip, recalling the kid and all his enthusiasm. He had seemed so happy at the idea of seeing his friend. It couldn't hurt, could it, to just give them a little fun?

"No, no, I'll come with you," he blurted, before blinking again, realizing what he had offered. Huh. Well, it had been a while since he had last been bowling. Why not?

Domi raised her eyebrows in disbelief, before nodding in agreement. "Sounds good then." Standing up, she smiled faintly before heading back to her room. "Let me get changed and then we can go pick up Josh? I won't take long."

Sam nodded even though she couldn't see him anymore, simply out of habit. Jessica had been the same as Dominia for this. 'I won't take long', sure. That was why he always ended up waiting for double the time she had predicted, each time they were supposed to go out. But it was always worth it in the end… His Jess. Perfect, adorable and now…? She wasn't there anymore. He sighed, rubbing his forehead tiredly. No use spending all his time thinking of the past. It was too late now, he couldn't go back and change things. Move on, that had been his inner mantra throughout the years. Especially now that Dean had an expiration date placed on his forehead. He had to live the moment.

So bowling could be fun. Possibly, yeah. Fun. That was good.

* * *

A/N: So here's the latest chapter. Notice that I'm leaving out the bowling part, because that's sort of an important part of the story. As well as the collar. Please give me your impressions, I'm really curious to see what you guys thought!

And thank you again for reading, you guys have no idea how much I appreciate it.


	8. Chapter 8: Bowling & Walmart interlude

"I'm ready."

Sam started at Domi's voice, surprised that only the allotted 10 minutes had passed. Huh. So she had been quick after all, which, to him, was surprising. Finally, he looked over at where she was awkwardly standing in the doorway, blinking once or twice to assure himself that this was the same person in front of him.

She was wearing a scarlet dress, which uncovered her arms and the intricate tattoos lacing down the sides, falling mid-thighs and flaring faintly. Sam shook his head before smiling faintly, as Domi stepped into the room.

"You look good," he mumbled faintly, standing up to grab his coat. "Let's go?"

Domi reached up to get her coat as well, nodding silently. She didn't really feel at ease with dresses, more used to bulky sweaters and jeans. Those were more comfy, especially in her line of 'work'. She didn't really have a need to look pretty. This was mostly for Josh, who had requested (or more like ordered her) to dress classy for their weekly sessions.

The two walked in dead silence to the bowling center, Dominia hunching a little to avoid the November wind. The weather had finally turned. At least, there was less light now. Much better for her eyes. Next to her, Sam was thoughtful. He was pretty sure Dean would strangle him if he could see him right now, but hey, he was an adult now, and he didn't need his older brother to give him orders. Dean was cool, but he had a huge tendency to forget that Sam wasn't five years old anymore. Clearing his throat, he decided to try and break the invisible barrier that had been created between the two.

"So how did the bowling sessions start?"

Domi looked up at him before straightening a little, thinking through her response.

"Well at the school Josh goes to, they have these bowling parties at the end of the year… Josh didn't know how to play and that embarrassed him, so he asked me to teach him. He's getting pretty good actually…" she smiled proudly, unconsciously imitating a mother fawning over her kid's achievements. Her expression made Sam chuckle in amusement, although he was interiorly surprised by the affection she showed towards a human kid. This went against all the things he had ever been told on monsters…

"Domi!" came a shout from in front of them. The djinn barely had a few seconds to brace herself before being rammed into by 80 pounds of overly excited pre-teen boy. She huffed before hugging him back, patting a gloved hand over his head fondly.

Sam had faintly jumped in surprise at the attack, before realizing what was going on, before laughing at Domi's expression, making her scowl at him over Josh's head, and causing the boy to realize that he wasn't as alone with his friend as he would've liked.

Turning towards the taller man, Josh scowled before grumbling: "Oh you again. Why aren't you gone already?"

Domi started at his tone, raising her eyebrows but deciding to let Sam field this one, curious to see how he'd manage.

"Well, we realized that our friend's problem would take a little longer than expected. We're staying in town for a month or so more. Domi's accepted to take us in for a while."

The girl in question snorted faintly, amused by his version of things. Ah well, it was the only politically acceptable thing they could figure out, so it'd have to work.

Josh's eyes were still narrowed, as he poked Sam as high as he could reach, meaning his stomach. "If you hurt her, I'll come after you," he threatened, causing a sad smile to form on Domi's lips. Poor Josh, she'd have to find a way to give him closure before she…left. It wouldn't be fair to him otherwise.

Sam winced visibly at the boy's words, feeling even guiltier than before. Was it really fair to have Domi die? The boy obviously didn't even consider the possibility of her being evil, which had to speak for something. Maybe they were wrong? But they were already so far gone, he didn't think he'd be able to convince Dean otherwise… His brother was still seeing mostly black and white. He doubted he'd get him to show mercy to a _djinn _of all things.

Clearing her throat, Domi clapped her hands, trying to dissipate the awkward atmosphere. "Let's go, shall we? We'll be late for our reservation, Josh."

The boy grinned up at her, forgetting immediately above his previous menaces. "Yes, come on!" he exclaimed, pulling her after him and leaving Sam to trail behind, feeling a little like a third wheel as he watched Domi's dress flutter.

"Hey Howie!" the girl commented cheerfully, reaching the welcome desk of the center. "You got our stuff ready? Josh promised he'd beat me this week."

The student grinned at the pair in front of him, before glancing inquisitively at Sam, standing behind them, hands stuck in his pockets, deciding not to comment.  
"Sure thing! That's quite the challenge you fixed for yourself there Josh."

The boy in question puffed his chest up proudly. "No it's not! I'm going to beat her."

Howie merely nodded before passing them two pairs of shoes. "You want one too?" he asked Sam, who shook his head with a rueful grin.

"I'm merely here to observe," he answered, before following the other two and plopping himself down on the couches in front of their lane to watch the two play.

'Domi' and 'the Master' had been entered as the two players for the game. The djinn was the first one up, grabbing a ball with ease and turning towards Josh to explain again how to throw the ball. She demonstrated, launching it and hitting 6 pins.

Josh grinned and took his own ball, heaving to manage to carry it over to the lane, before throwing it and hitting 3 bowling pins. The boy whooped in joy, and Domi high-fived him cheerfully, before going back for her own turn.

Sam observed silently as the game progressed, noting that Dominia didn't seem to be that good at the game. That was interesting, he had expected her to be talented at any kinds of sports, being a djinn and all. Huh.

He stretched and blinked in surprise when the lights went out, replaced with UV spotlights and flashing colors, transforming the bowling center into something more akin to a night club. Josh cheered loudly and, in sync with Domi and the overhead speaker, he exclaimed: "It's 9 PM everyone!"

As he watched, Domi's eyes seemed to glow a little bluer than usual, but that was perhaps simply the lights that gave the impression. As if to confirm his impression, she glanced over at him and deliberately amped up the glow, allowing herself to relax and show a bit more of her nature. All her skin seemed to shine a little more, as if illuminated from the inside. It was an amazing view and Sam was a little surprised to realize that he had been staring for a good few minutes. Huh. That was unexpected.

He shook his head and went to get a drink from the bar.

* * *

Dean really disliked huge supermarket structures. In his mind, Walmart was one of the hugest hellholes on earth. Really. Just. Ugh. Families milling everywhere, with yelling kids, or weird people fighting for discounts. It was horrible.

He roamed the shop, picking up the various ingredients on his list. Thyme, check. Lavender, check. Weird plant whose name he didn't get, check. He hid all the stuff in his bag, not really wanting people to stare at him weirdly. Not many guys in leather jackets went around Walmart looking for herbs. And lamb steak (for the blood, ha. No one could tell him he wasn't inventive). He didn't particularly feel like being held for questioning by the security guards near the entrance. Not that he couldn't take them, of course. But seriously, he wasn't in the mood for a fight.

Now to find the collar thing they'd do the spell on. Dean's lips twisted with a surprisingly evil smirk as he headed straight towards the pet section. At least this would be fun. A little bit of revenge.  
Unable to resist, he chuckled to himself, sounding a little manic as he picked out the most obviously canine-designed collar, a bright turquoise with a little bone tag on the front. Heading to the help counter, he leant on the desk and smiled brightly at the girl doing her nails.  
She blinked at him then smiled back, suddenly seeming in a much better mood.

"Hi, how can I help you?" she flirted, batting her eyelashes coyly. Dean smirked right back, handing over the collar.

"Could I have this engraved, please? Just put 'Dom' on the tag." The girl nodded, followed his instructions then returned, handing him the collar and the receipt, a few numbers scribbled on the back.

Hm. Good night after all. Maybe Walmart wasn't that bad?

* * *

"I'm going to fetch the pizza!" was the only warning Sam got before Josh zoomed past him, obviously in a hurry.

Domi shook her head indulgently, before waving Sam over with her fingers.

"Come on, play a few rounds while he's gone, I feel bad for making you just loiter around like this." She quipped easily, handing him a ball. Sam rolled his eyes at her but took it anyways. What could it hurt to try once?

After his toss, it became obvious: it could hurt his pride. The hunter shook his head in mock-shame as the ball rolled down the gutter, before dropping behind the scenes, the screen displaying a big fat zero, as if to make the humiliation even stronger.

Dominia laughed quietly before picking her ball up and stepping up to try. Sam stood behind her, crossing his arms across his chest.

"So how come you're not amazing at bowling? Don't djinns have pretty good senses or something?" he asked, unable to retain his curiosity any longer.

Dominia's gaze flicked from him to the pins, before she silently smirked, gesturing for him to watch. She tossed her ball and… perfect strike. Picking up a second ball, she reiterated the feat with apparent ease, before turning back to Sam.

"There's a groove in the lane, about middle of the length. Normal eyes can't see it, but I can. So I hit it on purpose to throw the ball off. That's how Josh won the last two games." She explained, voice a little cautious. She wasn't sure if it was still a good idea to tell all her secrets like that, but she actually trusted Sam. He had been nothing but nice to her so far.

Sam's eyes widened at the explanation, as he attempted to see the groove anyways, before giving up.

"Oh, wow." He mumbled to himself, considering the implications. "You must see everything in like, perfect HD…"

Domi grinned before nodding. "Yeah, it's one of the small perks of my… condition, let's say."

"So are all your senses like that?" he probed, trying to learn more.

She simply nodded, leaning against the ball distributor next to him. "Sometimes it's more of a bane than anything else…" she added a little later, biting her lip.

Sam was about to ask her to clarify but at that moment Josh returned, face almost hidden by the two deluxe pizzas he was carrying.

"Food time!" he exclaimed joyfully.

They all sat down together and ate in almost silence, enjoying the junk food.

When they were done, Dominia took the rests and went off in search of a trashcan. As soon as she was out of earshot, Josh turned towards Sam, eyes narrowed in faintly childish menace.

"So what are your intentions towards her?" he snapped, reusing a sentence he had heard in one of the soap operas the priests were fans of watching.

Sam stayed still for few seconds, mouth open, trying to understand. "Wait, what?!" he finally managed, eyes wide in confusion.

Josh leaned forward, imitating an Al Capone position he had liked. "Toward Domi. What are your intentions?"

Ah. Well shit.

* * *

A/N: Originally, the bowling scene was supposed to last one chapter, but it just ran away from me. And lead me in a high speed car chase.

And _then__, _Dean was just begging to be written.

I hope you enjoyed this passage! I think most of you were expecting more romance...? Give me your opinions and thoughts, please! Review, I adore you guys, really.

Shout-out: I'm looking for a beta for this story, so if anyone is interested, please, please do contact me. I'd be forever grateful.

Disclaimer: Still no closer to owning Supernatural. Meaning light years away. All I have is Domi, Josh and the plot ideas.


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